While the AFC Conference Championship Game didn’t necessarily live up to its billing, the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks put on quite the show at CenturyLink on Sunday evening. Two of the top teams in the NFL going down to the final seconds with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. The NFL couldn’t have written a better script.
Meanwhile, Peyton Manning dispersed of his critics in a big way in a performance that rivaled some of the greatest postseason outings in league history. He did so against rival QB Tom Brady, who just didn’t have what it takes on offense to overcome the Broncos’ high-octane passing game.
In the end, Seattle and Denver earned a trip to the Super Bowl in New Jersey next month. Here are our winners from NFL’s championship weekend.
Winner: Russell Wilson, Quarterback, Seattle Seahawks
He was too small to succeed in the NFL. The guy that Mike Glennon pretty much pushed out of town at North Carolina State has proved skeptics around the football world wrong. Not only that, Wilson has done it with class. While his performance in Seattle’s NFC Championship game win over San Francisco on Sunday evening wasn’t great, Wilson helped Seattle to a second Super Bowl appearance in the dramatic 23-17 victory.
Wilson completed 16-of-25 passes for over 200 yards with a score. Outside of a lost fumble on the first play of the game, Wilson played error-free football. He improvised a great deal with pressure on him throughout the day, hitting Doug Baldwin on multiple key receptions throughout. In the end, Wilson’s seemingly solid performance was one of the primary reasons that Seattle was able to upend the defending conference champions at home.
At a time when there are so many controversial figures in this rivalry, Wilson stood up and showed that sportsmanship shouldn’t be a lost cause in the NFL today. His postgame comments were a prime example of this.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irauKtYnR9M]
For this, every single football fan/writer should bow down to Wilson for his pure class and professionalism in the face of a dramatic victory against a bitter division rival. He could have easily taken the road more traveled.
Loser: Michael Crabtree, Wide Receiver, San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco was eliminated from Super Bowl contention for the second straight year on a corner fade to Crabtree, who really didn’t stand much of a chance going up against Richard Sherman. Once the ball was batted in the air by the best cornerback in football and intercepted by Malcolm Smith to put an end to San Francisco’s comeback attempt, it was all downhill for a player that had matured a great deal since holding out prior to his rookie season with the 49ers. His social media presence after the game showed us that Crabtree still has a long way to go as it relates to maturing and becoming a true teammate in every sense of the word.
Film don’t lie… @nflnetwork @espn pull up the tape of that game and show me where this guy is the best? #fake #fake #fake
— Michael Crabtree (@KingCrab15) January 20, 2014
Crabtree is right, film doesn’t lie. Sherman made a ridiculous play on the ball and stalled what could have been a conference-championship winning drive by San Francisco. Instead of focusing on the loss that the team suffered, Crabtree decided to take to Twitter in order to air an individual spat with another trash-talking player. Hey Mr. Crabtree, it’s not all about you. Your team lost a hard-fought game between two of the best teams in the NFL. How about thanking them for their gutsy performance? What about sending your wishes to fellow teammates NaVorro Bowman and Mike Iupati, both of whom suffered serious injuries? Instead, Crabtree represented what it means to be a diva receiver at a time when the NFL is clearly going away from that type.
Winner: Peyton Manning, Quarterback, Denver Broncos
Facing failures of playoffs past, Manning went up against the old demon that is Tom Brady and came out on top in an emphatic performance Sunday afternoon at Sports Authority Field in Denver. He completed 32-of-43 passes for 400 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions in the best single-game performance of his postseason career. In the process, Manning led the Broncos past New England and into the Super Bowl. It represents Manning’s third trip to the big game…his first as a member of the Broncos.
While all the skeptics (myself included) refused to pick Manning over Brady in a January game with everything on the line, he “Omaha’d” his way past New England and into the biggest stage the NFL has to offer.
Coming off a record-breaking regular season, one that will go down as the best in NFL history, Manning needed to pick that monkey off his back and throw it to the wolves. This is exactly what the future Hall of Fame quarterback did.
Loser: Robert Kraft, Owner, New England Patriots
John Bon Jovi may be leaving a Bronco fan ! pic.twitter.com/aJvvaqvEjm
— JUDIE STEIN (@judieboop) January 19, 2014
Whether it’s acting the part of a creeper on an audition video, dressing like Iceberg Slim or sharing the owners box with John Bon Jovi, it seems that Patriots owner Robert Kraft has gone done lost his mind. In a game that his focus should have been squarely on the field with his team, Kraft acted more like a mascot than an owner. Multiple times during the game, the camera zoomed into him treating the box more like a party that would have made Boogie Nights director Paul Thomas Anderson cringe.
I have nothing else to add here, but a friendly piece of advice to Mr. Kraft. Please don’t start to become more of a circus attraction than an owner. What you have done atop the Patriots organization in your tenure there has been nothing short of amazing. The last thing we need to see is a repeat of Al Davis’ final years in Oakland or what is going on with Jerry Jones in Dallas.
Winner/Loser: Richard Sherman, Seattle Seahawks
First, let me get this out of the way. Sherman is the best cornerback in the NFL and it really isn’t that close. Second, why the heck did Colin Kaepernick decide to target Sherman with the NFC Championship game on the line? Finally, I am in no way a fan of Sherman’s antics and ego-filled eccentricities. None of that is good for the NFL. In fact, he makes the Seahawks look bad when there is a whole lot to like about this team.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFYuwWCqmeU]
I don’t care how much trash talking was going on during the game. If Sherman isn’t going to respect the opponent, in this instance Crabtree, he needs to respect the game. Calling out an opponent after a hard-fought win makes absolutely no sense. It plays into the idea that Sherman is a loud-mouthed stooge that only looks out for himself. How about thanking Malcolm Smith for making the interception? What about showing appreciation to the 12th Man for showing exactly why CenturyLink is the most difficult destination in the sports world for road teams?
No, that doesn’t make any sense. Instead, Sherman decided to publicly attack one of the better receivers in the game immediately after making the play of his life. Where Wilson may show class in victory, this Pro Bowl cornerback failed to. It really is that simple.
Winner: Pete Carroll, Head Coach, Seattle Seahawks
Once thought of as nothing more than a great college coach, when Seattle hired Carroll back in 2010, there were many who outwardly questioned the decision. After all, Carroll had bombed out in both of his previous NFL stops and was leaving a USC program on the verge of probation. He was taking over an under-performing Seahawks team who had leftovers from the Mike Holmgren regime.
After earning a postseason spot with a 7-9 record in his first season with Seattle, Carroll welcomed former college rival Jim Harbaugh to the division with the 49ers. Harbaugh, who got the best of Carroll in college, seemingly trolled his counterpart in the first two seasons they were together in the NFC West…winning the division in 2011 and 2012, while leading San Francisco to a conference title last year.
Even after winning the division crown this year, many proclaimed Seattle to be underdogs at home against Harbaugh and the 49ers. Falling down 10-0 early in this one, Carroll’s Seahawks refused to panic. They showed calmness in the face of adversity and made the plays that were needed in order to win the game. At 62, Carroll will now make his first appearance in the Super Bowl. He does so after creating an atmosphere of winning and attitude in the Pacific Northwest. He does so after getting past his fiercest rival.
Winner: Jack Del Rio, Defensive Coordinator, Denver Broncos
What a great performance in terms of scheme from Del Rio and his Broncos’ defense Sunday against New England. With Von Miller, Chris Harris and Rahim Moore all sidelined due to injury, Denver’s defense came to play. Its secondary jammed the likes of Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola at the line, holding the latter to zero catches on one target. They consistently put pressure on Tom Brady, which led to issues with timing in the passing game.
The results were widespread and immediate.
LeGarrette Blount put up six yards on five carries after tallying over 350 yards in his last two games. When all was said and done Brady and Co., scored on just three of their eight possessions. The stunts at the line and a solid scheme as it relates to coverage in the passing game ended up being the two primary reasons that Denver’s defense played outstanding football. Del Rio should be given credit for that.
Loser: Seattle Seahawks Fans (Some of Them)
In the ultimate show of disrespect from a boisterous fanbase, Seattle homers threw food at NaVorro Bowman as he exited the field after suffering a serious knee injury. This tweet all but sums up what happened there.
Seahawks fans were throwing food at NaVorro Bowman when he was being taken off the field. No wonder they love Richard Sherman.
— Skip Bayless (@FunSkipBayless) January 20, 2014
A couple things I want to make clear. I absolutely hate having to embed a tweet from the ultimate troll himself, but Bayless makes a lot of sense here. What a disgusting show of disrespect from some Seahawks fans. Second, it must be noted that a few bad eggs don’t define an entire fanbase, as this conversation I had with a former colleague and Seahawks fan shows.
There is absolutely no room in the game for this crap. Bowman, who represents what it means to be a tough-as-nails player, didn’t deserve to be treated like that after suffering what is being reported to be a torn ACL.
This reminded me a great deal of Philadelphia Eagles fans cheering Michael Irvin after the Hall of Fame receiver suffered a serious neck injury years back. This represents the worst in human nature, plain and simple.
